Adventures of a Girl and a Chimera
by charz.the.manga.alchemist
Summary: "Hi, my name's Alexia Dawn and I'm 15. This is my story. It all started when I met a boy named Edward..." Better than it sounds. Chimera!Ed. Rated to be safe. Blood, gore, torture, abuse, character death and other stuff in later chapters
1. The First Encounter

**Ok, so, this is my first ACTUAL chapter to the story. Sory this chap's a little short. I mean, it IS the first chap.  
Anyways, I might put some pictures of my OC and the Chimera on DeviantArt later on, so don't wait up!  
Enjoy!**

**R&R or Winry will hit you with wrenches!**

* * *

I walked across the sweeping plains of Rizembool, as I would every morning. But I knew that today would be different, somehow.  
I would always walk to the middle of the field, sit down and have breakfast before walking back home to get ready for work. But today was my day off, so I could spend as much time out here as I could allow.

I sat down and was about to pull out my box of Coco Pops, when I saw someone walking towards me. It was a young boy, judging by the height I'd say he's about 12 years old, donned a red cloak and had golden hair. As he came closer, I saw his hair was pulled back in a braid with bangs in front of his face.  
"Oh, hello. I didn't expect anyone to be out here this early." The boy said, as he stopped in front of me. Only now, I could see his eyes. They were the most beautiful shade of gold, only a shade darker than his hair. But those eyes were filled with sorrow, hatred and stolen innocence. And yet, he seemed so carefree, without a problem in the world.  
"Me neither, and that's why I came here so early." I replied with a smile. I stood up, held out my hand and said "My name is Alexia Dawn. A strange name, I know, but I don't mind it"  
He shook my hand. "The name's Edward. Edward Elric"  
I felt my eyes widen a little, even if I didn't want them to.  
"So you're one of the Elric brothers that used to live around here. I've heard a fair bit about you from Winry." I said as Edward looked a little fearful of what I had heard from her.  
"But don't worry! It's good stuff!" I reasured him, and he lost that fearful look.  
"So, I hear you have Automail." Edward paled slightly at this, and gripped his right arm.  
"Good thing you got it from here. The Automail here is the best in Amstreis, or so I've heard." I continued.  
"Yeah, I guess it is." Ed replied softly. I don't think he wanted too many people to know about his Automail arm. I looked at him sympatheticly, and started again.  
"I came here for a tune up on mine." I showed him my left leg and my left arm. The Automail on my leg goes up to mid thigh, and the one on my arm goes up to my elbow. He stared for a minute, then composed himself.  
"Wow. I didn't expect an innocent looking girl like you to have Automail." Edward said, and I found that a little hurtful. But I just shook that off, I was used to insults that were WAY worse than that.  
"Don't say that, Edward. I know a 3-year old girl back in Rush Valley who has a fully Automail arm, up to her shoulder." I said with the slightest hint in my voice that said 'Don't talk about girls that way!'. Edward looked down to his feet, back up again to meet my eyes and said "I'm sorry. And please, call me Ed. Only my brother calls me Edward!" We both had a bit of a chuckle at this.  
Ed continued talking. "So, how did you get your Automail"  
I looked down, wanting to hide my face because of the tears that were starting to form. Just remembering that made me want to break down and cry. But I looked up a bit and started talking.

"I was about 3-years old, and I was living in Central with my mum, my dad and my brother." I motioned Ed to sit down, so he came and sat next to me on my picnic blanket.  
"We couldn't afford to live in the decent suburbs, so we stayed in a run-down house near a laboratory that was testing experiments of some sort." I didn't mention that it was Lab 5 because I knew it was a Military secret.  
"One day, I was at a friends house, staying for the night. The next day, I came home to find the house covered in Police tape. I asked the first person I saw in a Military uniform. He had dark hair, and even darker eyes. He told me my family had been attacked by a rouge Chimera from Lab 5, and it might still be in the house. I didn't care, so I went in to see my whole family, lying in the lounge room near the stairs, all dead. I fell to my knees and cried and cried. I cried so much, I didn't see the Chimera jump down the stairs and bite my arm. That's all I remember until I woke up in Hospital with the doctors telling me half of my arm and most of my leg were missing." I finished my story, tears in my eyes. And Edward sat there, taking in every little detail I told him. I expected him to tell me it was all my fault for not being there, my fault they died and that I should've died with them, but none of that came. I expected it to, because that's what everyone else told me, so I stopped telling people my story. But Edward didn't call me names or insult me. He probably would when he got to know me better, but he didn't right now.  
"Well, since we're being honest with each other, how did you get your Automail?" I asked him. He looked down. I caught the side of his face, He was so sad he looked like he wanted to cry, but couldn't.  
"I don't wanna talk about it." Was the simple answer I got.  
I looked away. "Oh. That bad, huh?" I asked again. I half expected him to say something like 'None of your buisness!' but all I got was a nod of his head, and that said more than anything. We sat in silence for about 10 minutes. I looked over to him, and saw something shining on his belt. I instantly saw it was a chain.  
"Hey Ed?" He looked up to me.  
"Are you, by any chance, a State Alchemist?" I questioned him. He was probably getting tired of all the things I asked.  
"Yeah. I am. How did you guess?" He said to me.  
I just shrugged and said "I saw the chain on your belt and figured it must lead to the watch"  
"Are you the one who works under Mustang?" I asked, but then he got angry. 'Oh no! I upset him! I hope he doesn't hit me too hard.' I thought and braced for a punch or a kick. But nothing came. All he was doing was yelling about the "Bastard Colonel" and "Short jokes" and other things, yelling so loud the whole neighbourhood was probably up by now.

About 15 minutes later, he settled down. He then asked me a question.  
"How did you know that I worked for Mustang?"  
"Well, I work in the Military, also. I work in the Intelligence Division with a man named Maes Hughes." I replied. I started to giggle, and Ed asked me what was so funny.  
"Sometimes, he talkes about that Mustang guy and a short, blond guy that works for him." I snickered before he got mad again. I broke out laughing when he did another one of his rants. But when he calmed down, he offered to take me to Winry's.  
"I'm a friend of hers, so if I refered you to her, she might lower the price or something." Edward offered, and I gladly accepted.  
We walked together, talking about nothing in perticular.  
When we got to the Rockbell Automail Shop, Winry was standing on the front porch in her usual attire: a black tank top, purple jumpsuit and matching bandana.  
"Ooooooooooooohhhh! It seems that Edward's got himself a GIRLFRIEND!" Winry teased, and we both turned red. We both spoke at the same time. Ed saying "She's not my girlfriend!", and me saying "He's not my boyfriend!", then we just turned even redder. If that was possible.  
When we wnt inside, she asked me what I was here for. I told her I needed a tune up, so she took my arm and leg from their respectful sockets.  
She went into another room, to inspect the Automail, I pressumed. All I could hear was her saying things like "That's not right", "This is all wrong" and "That just doesn't look right!".  
That's how I wound up with half a left arm and a replacement left leg for the rest of the week, while Winry builds me a new arm and leg.

This is going to be a long week, with Edward Elric and Winry Rockbell.

* * *

**Satisfying enough for you? CHAPTERS WILL BE LONGER! Just need ideas. :)**


	2. Automail, Alchemy and the Kitten

**Hello all! 2nd chappy UP! w00t! I don't think this one turned out so well... sad now. T-T  
Anyway, I'm nearly finnished with pictures for my OC and Chimera!Ed. I'll post a link up on my next chapter.  
I was watching Inuyasha while I wrote this. Who can find the hint? It's a BIIIIIG hint, so it's kinda obvious...  
Enjoy!**

_

* * *

_

All I could hear was her saying things like "That's not right", "This is all wrong" and "That just doesn't look right.  
That's how I wound up with half a left arm and a replacement left leg for the rest of the week, while Winry builds me a new arm and leg.

_This is going to be a long week, with Edward Elric and Winry Rockbell._

* * *

The week spent with at Rockbells went slowly, but that was ok, because I got to spend more time with Edward.  
He was teaching me how to use Alchemy, and the law of Equivalent Exchange. But we didn't do too much hands-on work, we mostly read books on Alchemy and Ed let me read his notes every now and then.  
When we did practise Alchemy, it was always fun. He'd transmute something and I'd have to try and replicate it. Edward would say that I was pretty good for a beginner, and would make a great Alchemist one day.

I also tried to learn about the construction of Automail from Winry. It was very confusing, but she somehow got me to understand it. I figured it was just like putting together a puzzle, but with a lot more pieces and there's no pictures to show you where to put them.

"Alexia, you ready to do more training?" Edward said as he pulled the book away that I was reading. I tried to reach for it, but because I was sitting, I couldn't reach it.  
"Hey! I was reading that!" I complained, still trying to reach the book.  
"Yeah, I know. That's why I took it." Ed said, reading the book quickly with a smirk.  
"Hey, wait a minute. You were actually STUDYING?" He said with fake shock.  
"Of course I was. Can we go now?" I mumbled. Ed obviously caught it, as he replied "Alright, let's go."

We walked outside to the back of the house as we normally did. We used this spot, mostly because of all the raw material around. There were lots of trees, a fair bit of grass, but was worn in patches where we did our transmutaions. There was also a river that ran down the bank a little, so we could use water if we wanted.

Edward clapped his hands.  
"Ok, let's see if you can copy this!" He said as he slammed his hands to the ground. The usual blue lightning followed, as a life-sized model of a Chimera sprung from the ground. He had used the different kinds of clay in the ground to colour it slightly, so it had red and black fur. I thought it was a wolf at first, but then I noticed it had almost human-like featues.

I bent down to draw my array, when Ed took my chalk.  
"I'm going to throw this chalk somewhere. Whatever it hits, you have to include in your transmutation." He instructed as he threw it over his shoulder. I felt almost scared to watch as the small white cylinder went flying. After we were sure it had landed, we went to look for whatever it might have hit.  
We discovered the chalk had hit a tree, bounced along the ground and had landed on the rocks by the river. So, I had to incorperate wood, dirt and rock into my replica. That would be hard.

After I got some wood, dirt and rocks, I drew my transmutaion circle. I did it fairly big, so I had some room for minor detailing.  
I bent down and pressed my fingertips on my right hand to the edge of the circle. The usual blue light danced around me as dirt and dust swirled from the ground. I normally kept my eyes closed during the transmutation, but I opened them out of curiosity. I stared in awe as the elements of the design melded together. I almost forgot I had to concentrate on how to mould the replica and where everything had to go.  
When I finished, the blue light faded and the dust fell back to the ground. I made the wolf Chimera pretty much the same as Ed's, but with major differences in structure and colour. Good thing the tree that the chalk hit was a Redwood, otherwise I'd never be able to get the red colouring in the fur. I made the eyes a dark brown from the dirt and the rest of the fur, a dazeling silvery-grey from the rocks. Ed's Chimera was in a standing position, baring it's teeth, where my Chimera was getting ready to pounce. And seemed to be growling. I didn't remember doing that...

Ed circled my model Chimera, taking in every detail. He then stood back, smiled and said "That's some great work, there. Good job, Alexia!" And gave me a thumbs-up. I politely smiled back, still thinking of how I managed to get it to that position without even trying.  
Until about two o'clock, we did some other small transmutations and Edward told me how to get the detail right on small ones.

When we went back to the house, Alphonse was home from visiting Rose in Lior. Edward introduced us both before we got a late lunch.  
Afterwords, I went to see what Winry was up to and if I could get somemore lessons in before dinner. I came up to the workshop door, only to have it opened in front of me, smacking me in the face in the process. Winry saw me and apologised as I got up, rubbing my dore nose, pissed. 'I might go take out my frustration on Ed later...' I thought as an evil smirk appeared on my face. We were about to enter the work area, when I heard a crash coming from the kitchen.  
I quickly turned around and said to myself "What was that?" I soon found out it was a small, dark orange and black kitten. The said kitten ran up the hall and sat behind my legs, obviously scared. I could see why when an annoyed Ed stormed up the hallway with his brother following close behind.  
"What's going on?" I half yelled at Edward as I bent down to pick up the fluffball.  
"Al brought home another kitten!" He turned to said person. "You always do this"  
"I know, but I can't leave them to starve to death..." Alphonse sheepishly said, looking down.  
I held up the kitten to my face. His ears twitched slightly as he yawned. His eyes were the most amazing shade of blue, although mostly white cats have blue eyes. Even though I'm more of a "Dog person", I just couldn't put him down. He was SO CUTE!  
While I was thinking, Al must've asked if he could keep it, as he looked as sad as armour could, and Ed looked slightly annoyed.  
"If no one here is going to claim it, I might as well keep it." I announced fairly loudly to get their attention.  
Al pretty much jumped with joy, saying "Yay! The kitty's gonna stay here!", Ed looked even more annoyed and Winry must've gone back into the room.  
"Well, what're you gonna name it? How are going to raise it?" Ed questioned me as I petted the small creature. I had to think about that.  
"I'm calling it... Inu-chan!" I announced again, making both Ed and Al give me funny looks. "And I'm going to raise it like I would a dog, so he can help out in certain situations." Ed must've agreed with me, because he stopped shooting me funny looks.

For the rest of the day, I looked for a place for Inu-chan to sleep. I found the best place: right beside Al's bed. Then I went to the nearest shops to find a nice collar, a food bowl, a water bowl and a small bed. The collar I found was supposed to be a dogs collar, but oh well. It was a grey collar with red spikes on it.  
That night, I started teaching Inu-chan simple commands like sit and roll over. When he masters these, I'll start teaching him more advanced ones. When I put him to bed, he didn't want to stay there, and followed me to my bed.  
"Fine, you can sleep with me. But only for tonight, got it?" I said to the kitten. He made a soft 'meow', as if he understood me, and jumped up onto the end of the bed. I climbed in and turned off the light. About five minutes after I got settled, Inu-chan decided to sleep right under my chin, it's tail tickling my nose. It made me sneeze a few times, but it didn't bother me. 'I'm gonna have to teach him to sleep in his bed.' I thought as I drifted off to my dreams.

* * *

When I woke the next day, the first thing I noticed was that Inu-chan was gone. The next thing I noticed was Al standing next to me as I lay on the floor.  
"Al?... How'd I get here?" I asked drowsily. I've never fallen out of bed before.  
"Well, you fell out of bed, I guess." Al replied. Didn't really answer my question.  
"When you fell, Inu-chan got scared and ran into me and Ed's room. I found him, so I wanted to bring him back." I stood up slowly and got Al to leave. Well, I sort of pushed him out. I fixed up the sheets, got dressed and walked in to the kitchen. I nearly fell over laughing at what I saw: Ed was half lying on the kitchen bench, lightly snoring and he looked like he had an afro. At that point, Winry walked in and saw Ed. I don't know where she got it, but Winry pulled out a wrench. I tried to warn Ed, but didn't have enough time because Winry smashed him in the head with her wrench. He screamed bloody murder and fell on the floor, clutching his head in pain.  
"Oh yeah. Alexia? Your new Automail is done. Come and get it when you're ready." Winry said to me as she walked past, tapping me on the shoulder with her wrench.

'That's a big wrench...' I thought, scared for my safety while in this house.

* * *

**Did anyone find the hint? Duh, of course you did! If you didn't, I'll post it next chapter. Get ready to see my OC and Chimera!Ed, but don't wait up!**


	3. Automail Replacements and more Alchemy

**Ola! I'm sorry I haven't updated in like, forever, but I'll make it up to you. Send me an idea, an I might make a one-shot with it. Maybe. It's just that my computer is being a spaz and keeps crashing and at some point, I lost all of my work. Including assignments. OH NOEZ! lol.**

**R&R or I'll attatch Automail to your face! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!! sorry. Enjoy!**

_

* * *

_

_I tried to warn Ed, but didn't have enough time because Winry smashed him in the head with her wrench. He screamed bloody murder and fell on the floor, clutching his head in pain.  
"Oh yeah. Alexia? Your new Automail is done. Come and get it when you're ready." Winry said to me as she walked past, tapping me on the shoulder with her wrench._

_'That's a big wrench...' I thought, scared for my safety while in this house._

* * *

I hated getting new Automail, almost as much as Edward hated needles.  
I found that out after he had to get a Tetanus Booster when his leg started getting a bit rusty. He had to get a new leg, so I waited until Ed had his Automail done to get mine. That's why I'm wearing shorts and a singlet and sitting in an armchair, waiting for Winry and Pinako to get my arm and leg.  
"I hate getting replacement Automail..." I grumbled as Winry walked in.  
"I know, but I guess you have too." Ed replied with a feint smile.

Winry pulled up a small stool next to my left arm and a footrest to my left leg, and put the limbs on them. They got ready to insert them, when Winry said, "You do know that this is gonna hurt, right?"  
I gulped and said "Yeah. I know."  
They told me to count down from five, and they'll put them in on zero.  
"5... 4... 3..."  
They pushed the arm and the leg in at the same time, it was too early, and it hurt like a bitch! At least it wasn't as bad as getting the Ports put in.  
I nearly let out a yelp of pain, but held it in, somehow.

"Well, how does it feel?" Winry asked me.  
I started moving the limbs around, and it felt so much better than my old ones. My other arm and leg felt so heavy, and these ones felt so much lighter!  
"Thank you! These feel so much better!" I replied, standing up and taking a few steps. I went to go and get the money for payment, and came back, when Winry started telling me about my new Automail.  
"Now, you might notice they feel lighter than the other ones. That's because I used Titanium instead of Steel. Steel rusts pretty easily and like a lightning rod. So, here are some ways to take care of them-"

After that, I pretty much just zoned out, but to make it seem like I was paying attention, I nodded every now and again.  
I think I might have interrupted her, because she looked annoyed when I said "Hey Ed, Al, you wanna go outside and do some sparring?"  
We went outside and slammed the door behind us, leaving Winry to burn holes in the door with her eyes.

* * *

While Ed sparred with Al, I decided to take a rest and examine my shiny (Not so shiny now!) new Automail. On the outside, it looked exactly the same as my old ones, but I knew it was different on the inside. I moved from looking at my arm to my hand, and I noticed something different. There, in the middle of my palm, was a small Transmutation Circle. It was the one I normally used to do my Alchemy, carved in scratchy lines on my hand.  
"I thought that would make things easier." Ed said as he stood beside me. I jumped at his voice, because I thought him and Al were still sparring.  
"If you draw the same one on your other hand, you won't need to draw any more circles. And this one's a special one, because even if you have gloves on, it will still activate." He continued. I just kept looking at the small circle on my hand, mumbling "So, it'll look like I don't need a circle"  
Ed nodded and said with a grin "C'mon, go and draw another one on your other hand and let's test it out!"

* * *

A few hours later, we re-entered the house, covered in dirt and a few scratches. Ed was the first to walk in, because he yelled out "Hey granny! What's for dinner?"  
I was too preoccupied with playing with Inu-chan to hear what we were having.

* * *

I walked into the dining room, and was welcomed by the smell of something delicious.  
"Mmm... Something smells good." I said to no one in particular.  
Someone then yelled out we were having fish with lemon and pepper, and I grimmaced. I didn't like fish, at all.  
I yelled back "I'm not that hungry. Can I just wrap mine up and have it later?"  
I tried to make myself look busy by cleaning up the room, although there wasn't much there to clean. Then Winry walked in with a disappointed look and said "Why don't you want your dinner now? Is there something wrong with my cooking?"  
"O-of course not! It's just-" I started, looking guilty, until Winry pulled me out of the room by my collar.  
"Good. Then you can have your dinner now."

I sat at the table, next to Alphonse and across from Edward, staring at the pile of white flesh in front of me. Ed was doing the same thing, but with the glass of milk that was set in front of him. We looked up at each other with disgust written across our faces and read each others thoughts: We had to get out of here somehow.  
Al saw this silent conversation, and while Winry and Pinako were talking, he asked me "Alexia, What's wrong?"  
I looked up to him and said in monotone, "I don't like fish."  
He sighed and said "I'll help you get out of this, only because you're being nice about it." He glared daggers at Ed, who shrugged.  
He turned to Winry and Pinako, and I coughed to get their attention. They turned around and looked at me, so I pointed to Al as if to say he was the one who did it. They looked from me to Al with questioning eyes.  
"Alexia just told me that she's allergic to fish. She didn't want to tell you until after dinner, because she thought it might make you feel bad." Al said, making me sound like the good guy. I looked at him and nodded, mouthing the words "Thank you."  
Winry looked suprised as she said "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know, so... If you want, I can get you something else."  
I shook my head. "No, it's ok. I'll get something, you eat your dinner." I said, getting up.  
I walked into the kitchen, grabbed a small tin of spaghetti, a fork and ate it out of the can. I know I looked weird, but I didn't care. I was just glad to be away from that vile, white thing called fish.

* * *

After dinner, Al and I were playing with Inu-chan when Edward walked in and pulled Al away around the corner. I heard something about "Why don't you do that for me?" or something like that, until Ed stormed away and Al came and sat down again.  
"So, what was that about?" I asked.  
"Brother just wanted to know why I don't do anything like that for him, and I told him that he can do it himself and to get over it." Al replied, letting Inu-chan climb into his lap.  
"Wow, you're brave." I said to myself.

* * *

About an hour later, I was in my pyjamas and sitting in an armchair in Ed's 'personal library', reading some of his Alchemy books. That's when Al decided to come in.  
"Hey, Al. Don't tell Ed I'm reading his books. He'll get mad." I said, not looking up.  
"Ok then, I won't tell." Al replied.  
We sat in silence for about 10 minutes, until Al spoke.  
"There was something that Brother wanted me to tell you, we're going to Central tomorrow morning because brother got called in for another mission." Al said.  
I looked up at him and asked, "How early are we leaving?"  
"Five in the morning. Better get your stuff ready!" Al said, waving and walking towards the door.  
I quickly snapped the book shut, ran in to my room and started shoving my belongings in my bag.  
"Bloody trains," I mumbled to myself. "Why do they have to leave so early!"

After I finished packing my almost-bursting bag, I was about to go to sleep, when someone knocked on my door. I got up to answer it, nearly tripping over my bag. I opened the door to find Edward there.  
"Oh. Hey, Ed. Come in." I said as he walked in and sat on my bed.  
"You know how I have to do another mission tomorrow?" He asked, turning to me.  
I nodded. "Yeah, what about it?"  
"Well, I know you work with Hughes in the Intelligence Department, but did you want to be anything more than that?" He questioned.  
"Um... Since you've been teaching me Alchemy, I want to be a State Alchemist." I said, turning red.  
"That's ok. Maybe, I can see if you can come on this mission with me. It's only a simple one, so I'll see if I can persuade The Bastard to let you come with me." Ed winked.  
"You can? Really? That would be SO GREAT!" I said excitedly and hugged Ed.  
Ed said goodnight and walked out the door, closing it behind him.

'_Wow. Going on an actual mission with Ed!_' I thought, lying in bed.  
I fell asleep, thinking of what tomorrow would bring.

* * *

**See? I told you that chapters would be longer! Send me ideas! If I make one, I'll credit you or put your character in it! If you want your character in it, when you give me the idea, include their name, age, description and any other nessisary details. bye-byez!**


	4. Talking to Mustang and the First Mission

**Hey peoplez! sorry for not updating in, like, forever. So, to make it up to you few people who read my story and actually like it, I'm going to try and update at least evey 2 weeks.  
This probably won't happen because I get writers block very easily, and I get a crap-load of homework from my teachers skool.  
**damn skoolwork...

**ANYWAYZZZ, I'm going to try and draw what my OC looks like and post it on DeviantArt, so look out for that soon. When I do that I'll post the link in one of my chapters.**

**Enjoy this long-ish chapter, because it's probably one of the longest ones you'll get! kidding! Enjoy anyway! :P**

_

* * *

_

_"Well, I know you work with Hughes in the Intelligence Department, but did you want to be anything more than that?" He questioned.  
"Um... Since you've been teaching me Alchemy, I want to be a State Alchemist." I said, turning red.  
"That's ok. Maybe, I can see if you can come on this mission with me. It's only a simple one, so I'll see if I can persuade The Bastard to let you come with me." Ed winked.  
"You can? Really? That would be SO GREAT!" I said excitedly and hugged Ed.  
Ed said goodnight and walked out the door, closing it behind him._

'Wow. Going on an actual mission with Ed!_' I thought, lying in bed.  
I fell asleep, thinking of what tomorrow would bring._

* * *

I sat on a bench at a train station with Ed and Al, rubbing my eyes.

"I hate getting trains this early..." I sighed.

The morning sky was still a night time blue and the air around us was still cold. I looked over to Edward, who was shivering slightly, and Al.  
'I wonder what kind of mission we'll be going on?' I thought to myself as I shivered.

"Hey, Ed? When's the train getting here?" I asked as he stood.

"It should be here any minute." He said as Al got up and stood next to him.

Then, as if on que, a loud whistle peirced the cold air as the train pulled in to the station. The train puffed out smoke as we boarded and found our seats.  
When I sat down, I could feel myself getting drowsy again as Edward sat next to me and Alphonse sat on the opposite seats.  
Ed could see it was getting harder for me to keep my eyes open, so he moved over a little for me to lay down.

"You can go to sleep if you want, because we're going to be on this train for a long time." He said with a smile.

"Thank you." I murmered as I put my head on something warm.  
I opened my eyes for a second, to see that I was resting on Edward's shoulder. But since I was too tired to do anything, I just let my eyes close again and drift off to sleep.

* * *

I felt someone shaking me, and telling me to wake up.

"Ungh... Go away." I moaned, waving my automail arm around and hitting something hard.

I found out, when I opened my eyes, that the hard thing I hit was Ed's head. He was sitting next to me, holding a large bump on his forehead and trying his hardest not to scream profanities.

"Ohmigosh! I'm so sorry!" I apologized and tried to look innocent enough, while inside my mind I was having a laughing fit.

"No, no, it's fine." Ed mumbled, rubbing the sore spot. "It's go down..."

I looked guilty and kept mumbling apologies, when Al finally spoke up.

"Anyway, I woke you up to tell you that we're nearly at Central." He stated.

Again, as if on que, the train pulled in to Central Station. The doors swung open as I gathered my things, and Ed did the same. We walked out on to the platform, when we were met by two people, a male and a female, in Military uniforms.

"Hey, Edward! Long time, no see, huh?" Said the male.

"Hey, Hughes. What are you doing here?" Ed replied, a confused smile on his face.

"We just wanted to welcome you back. Isn't that right, Schiezka?" Maes said, turning to the female.

"Yeah, I guess so..." She mumbled. When she looked at me, she perked up again.  
"Alexia! I haven't seen you for a while." Schiezka nearly yelled, hugging me.

"Yeah, you too..." I replied and pushed her away, not being fond of hugs.

"Hello Hughes. How are you?" I asked, turning to the man and smiling.

"Great! I always am when I'm living with such beautiful girls as my wife and daughter!" Hughes exclaimed, dancing around like a weirdo.

"Okay then..." I said to myself, then turned to Edward. "Ed? Can we go now? Hughes is starting to creep me out..." I said, almost pleading.

"Yeah. Let's go Al." He said, pulling his brother with him.

Hughes must have noticed our leaving him, because I heard a distant call and it said he'll show us pictures. We all yelled out "OH NO!!!" and ran for our lives towards Central HQ.

* * *

When we got to the large front doors of the building, it was already noon.

"Oh crap! I'm late!" Ed yelled, ramming open the doors and zooming down the halls, leaving Alphonse and I at the front doors.

"Hey Al? Do you mind if you show me how to get to Colonel Mustang's office? Because it seems that Edward won't do it." I sighed.

"Sure." He said, chuckling at me.

**"IT'S NOT FUNNY!!"** I yelled at him angrily, which just made him laugh even harder.

We walked down the long corridors, me growling and Al just laughing. As we walked, I made a mental note to try and keep track of where we were going.

* * *

When we got to Mustang's office, I silently thanked Al and knocked on the oak double-doors.

"Come in." Said a stern voice from inside.

I opened the doors and took a few steps inside, expecting to see them sitting and talking about something importent. Instead, Ed was leaning over Mustang's desk and yelling something at him that I couldn't make out. Something about 'short jokes'. And what was even weirder was that Mustang just sat there, taking everything Ed threw at him.

'Weird... When Hughes annoys the Colonel, he usually nearly snaps his fingers at the phone. But when Ed pisses off the Colonel, he doesn't do anything.' I thought to myself, as Mustang said something and Ed quickly sat down.

I sat down across from Ed on the opposite couch, as Mustang started speaking.

"Fullmetal, you have a new assignment. It won't take you too long, so you don't have to take your brother with you." He stated.

"Mustang? Before you start boring us with your long-winded explination of my mission, can I ask a favour of you?" Ed cut in, making Mustang stare at him.

"What is it?" Mustang asked, looking from Ed, to me, and back.

"I want to know if she," Ed motioned to me, "Can come on this assignment with me." He said.

Everything in the room went dead quiet. Ed silently dared Mustang to say yes, while he thought of what his answer should be. Suddenly, Mustang got up from behind his desk, came over and stood right in front of me. I looked up, feeling nervous, to see him looking straight into my eyes. It was kinda freaking me out.

"What is your name?" Mustang asked flatly.

"M-my name is Alexia Dawn, C-colonel Mustang sir." I answered, trying to sound confident but failing miserably at it.

"Are you any good at fighting or Alchemy?" He asked, again, flatly.

"I'm a decent fighter, and I'm getting better with my Alchemy." I said, looking behind Mustang to Edward, who was smiling.

"And why do you want to go on this mission with Fullmetal?" He asked, turning around to sit back at his desk.

"I want to go on this mission with Edward," I put emphasis on Edward's name, seeing as Mustang never called him by his name, "Because I now know that I'd like to be a State Alchemist." I said, sounding more and more confident.

"I see..." Mustang pondered on the thought. "Well, I see this is now a two-person mission. Listen carefully, and I'll explain what you have to do..."

* * *

"So, all we have to do is visit this town and report back if we find anything suspicious?" I asked as we walked down the corridor.

"Basicly... Yeah." Edward said, walking ahead of me to talk to Al.

Ed and Al started talking as I stood there, thinking about how stupid this mission is. I also started thinking about what COULD happen and what might happen.

'What if we do find something? I wonder what it could be?' I thought for a while.

I must've been thinking longer than I thought I was, because a hand started waving in front of my face and I heard someone say "I think she's broken...". That's when I immediately chucked a spaz.

**"I'M NOT BROKEN! I WAS JUST THINKING! HOW CAN A HUMAN BREAK, ANYWAY!?!"** I screamed, gaining the attention of everyone around me, and people in offices looked out the doors at me. I looked around at the people and ran away, blushing, as fast as I could.

I had no idea where I was running, all I knew was that I had to get out of there, and fast. But I was so concentrated on running that I lost track of where I was going, and ended up lost.

"Oh no, I was so embarrased that I lost my way." I said to myself. "Why is this place so damn big?"

"Maybe because it has to fit a lot of people in it." Came a voice from behind me.

I turned around to see that it was Lieutenant Hawkeye. She was smiling at me, which she doesn't normally do.

"Are you lost?" She asked calmly.

"Yeah, just a little." I said sarcasticlly. "Can you please help me find the front of this place?"

"Sure, no problem." She said and started to walk away. I started following her, thinking about how stupid of me it was running away and getting lost in the depths of Central HQ.

* * *

Hawkeye and I arrived at the large front doors of the building, talking between ourselves. Ed came up to me and said something, but I was listening to Lieutenant Hawkeye, so I didn't hear it.

"Come on, Alexia. The train we need to catch leaves in half an hour and we still need to get our stuff." Ed said, already walking back down the steps.

"Where are you going?" Hawkeye asked.

"We're going on an assignment, now come on!" Edward yelled back, even though the question was intended for me.

"So, you're going on your first mission. Good for you." Hawkeye said to me, smiling.

"Thanks again for helping me out. I'll see you later." I replied, waving back to her as I walked down the steps.

"Take care of yourself and Edward!" She yelled to us as we ran down the road, hoping we could still get to our train.

* * *

**review please. don't have very many and it makes me feel bad. T-T**


	5. The Confession and the Chimera

**-Sigh...- I REALLY don't like this chapter... You'll see why soon enough... -cries- This is one of my WORST CHAPTERS EVAH!!!  


* * *

**

_"So, you're going on your first mission. Good for you." Hawkeye said to me, smiling._

_"Thanks again for helping me out. I'll see you later." I replied, waving back to her as I walked down the steps._

_"Take care of yourself and Edward!" She yelled to us as we ran down the road, hoping we could still get to our train.

* * *

_

**The Confession and the Chimera**

'Bloody Edward...' I thought as Ed, Al and I stood at the platform of Central Train Station.

Edward made me hurry up, because he made me think we'd miss our train if I didn't. We got to the station with 15 minutes to spare. So for the rest of the time, I sat on the ground, being bored. And sometimes annoying Edward by calling him short.

"Guys, this is boring!" I complained for the umpteenth time.

"Alexia, for once in your life, PUT UP WITH IT!!!" Edward screamed at me.

I started getting really scared, because from past experiences, once the yelling and screaming starts, the hitting comes pretty soon after.

"No! Please, don't hit me! I'll be good, I promise!" I pleaded back, tears welling up in my eyes as I put my arms up to defend myself.

'This is Rush Valley all over again...' I thought as Edward and Alphonse gave me a strange look.

"Why would I hit you, Alexia?" Ed asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.

I instinctively flinched from the contact, and then realized it wasn't anything to fear.

I looked up at Ed, who was standing over me with a wide, warm smile.

"Don't worry about it." I mumbled quickly, wiping away my tears.

"No, we will worry about it." Al said, looking over to me and Ed.

"That's right. If it got you that worked up and scared, it must be bad." Edward said, sitting down next to me.

"No. I don't want to talk about it, so leave me alone." I muttered loud enough for them to hear. "I really don't like talking about it..."

"Come on, Alexia. It'll help you feel better if you get it off your chest." Al stated, moving closer to me.

"Fine, I'll tell you about it on the train." I said, hoping the train wouldn't come for a while.

But it seemed fate didn't want me to wait, as the train pulled into the station just after I said it. We shuffled on and found our seats. We sat down as I thought about how to explain everything that's happened to me.

The train started moving, yet we sat in silence.

* * *

"Well?" Ed asked after 15 minutes of silence.

"Well what?" I said, looking around from the window.

"Well, are you gonna explain what happened at the station?" Ed replied, Alphonse watching over his shoulder.

"Maybe..." I mumbled, trying to avoid it.

"You know, it's easier to talk with friends than to keep it all inside." Al advised, leaning over Ed's shoulder.

'They won't stop harassing me about it! I guess I'll HAVE to tell them...' I thought, bracing myself for what may come.

I took in a deep, shaky breath, and started.

"A little while after getting my Automail done, I had no family to go home to. I didn't even have a house to go home to, because the Chimera was still living there. So, I lived on the streets of Rush Valley for a while before a nice man and woman took me in. Their names were Sheryl and Bob." I explained, Ed and Al listening intently.

I sat staring out the window for a minute, tears building up in my eyes.

"So, what was the bad thing about that?" Al asked, wanting to know what happened.

"Long story short, they abused me and did experiments on me…" I mumbled in reply, not turning around from the window.

"What kind of 'experiments'?" Edward asked, taking on a suddenly serious tone.

"Alchemical experiments… Like the ones they do on Chimeras…" I said quietly, tears running down my face as I remembered the pain they put me through.

"I'm sorry, but you didn't have to hear that…" I said with a smile as I turned to face them, wiping tears from my eyes.

"And what does that have to do with the train station?" Al asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Well, if I did something wrong, even the littlest thing you wouldn't even worry about, they'd beat me and send me to my room for the night." I replied, more tears running down my face.

I quickly faced the window again, wiping away tears as quickly as I could.

For the rest of the train ride, we all sat in silence.

* * *

When we pulled into the station, red dust puffed around the doors and windows outside.  
The doors opened and we departed the train, squinting as the dust continued to rise.

"So… this is the town?" I asked, putting my arm over my eyes as we walked.

"I guess so." Ed replied, looking at the small map he held. "This must be Bluebird Town."

As the train left the station, kicking up more red dust, we looked out over the small, practically deserted town.

"I thought this town was a tourist attraction, not a dust bowl." I said, kicking a small rock in front of me.

"It used to be, before all the bluebirds that flew here every year, found a warmer climate further north in the winter." Ed said, starting down the small hill, toward the small town.

We quickly followed him down the hill, me stumbling a few times.

As we walked through the streets of Bluebird Town, I peeked through some of the windows in the buildings surrounding us. Some had people still living in them, while others just had rats and mice scouring the floors for food scraps.

"There's not really anything suspicious, so why are we even here?" Ed complained.

"C'mon brother. We should at least spend a night or two here, just to make sure." Al said, looking at the buildings as well.

* * *

I made myself comfortable on the floor of the old, run-down house. Edward offered me the long table, but I refused, saying I'd be just as cosy on the floor.

"Well, today was a glorious waste of time, now wasn't it? We didn't even find anything!" I said, letting my head hit the floorboards with a thump.

"Yep... All I know is that I'm going to sleep. G'night everyone." Ed replied from the table, letting his arm hang over the side.

"Goodnight brother." Alphonse said, not getting a response from him.

The room was quiet for a while, as the crickets chirped loudly outside. I shuffled around, trying to find a corner of the room. Once I did, my eyes started to droop.

"Goodnight Alexia." Al whispered, looking over to me.

"Goodnight…" I whispered back, falling asleep as the crickets continued to chirp.

* * *

I bolted upright in my little corner, giving myself a slight dizzy spell, when I heard a loud noise from outside. I turned to Al to see if he heard it too, and seeing him look back at me, I guessed he did.  
Al and I tip-toed out the door with a gas lantern and started to search the immediate area.

"I wonder what that was…" I whispered to myself, holding the lantern higher, making our small area lighter.

"I don't know, but to me, it sounded like a person…" Al said slightly louder.

I shushed him, lifting my finger to my lips, to make sure Ed wouldn't wake up.

'_What am I worrying about? Edward can sleep through a bomb going of!' _I thought as I scanned the darkness for signs of movement.

Suddenly, a silhouetted figure shakily stood, and ran off.  
I ran after it, grabbing Al's arm as I did. We followed it down the street and through an alleyway.  
When we reached the end of the alley, the figure was slumped against the back wall. I ran over to it to see if it was okay. Once I got close enough, I saw it was a young girl with large bat ears and black, bat-like wings protruding from her back. She also had small, pointed fangs peeking out from under her top lip.

"Are they alright?" Al asked after a minute, cautiously walking toward me and the girl.

This made me remember what I was looking for on the girl. I looked at her arms, seeing that they were covered in small cuts and scrapes, as was her face and legs. My eyes trailed down from her face to her stomach, which had a large, deep gash on it, and it was leaking a lot of blood. I grabbed her arm and placed my index and middle finger on her wrist, noticing her skin was a deathly white.

"Alexia…" Al said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "Is she okay?"

"No…" I replied, sadness slipping through in my voice.

I placed her hand in her lap as I got up and turned to Al, who was standing behind me.  
I kept my eyes fixed on the floor and my head down.

"She's dead."

* * *

**-cries!- I don't like this chap... Feel free to tell me otherwise... -sigh...-**


	6. The Note and Guard Duty

**WHOO! I still live :P I'm really really REALLY sorry I haven't updated and I'm not going to make up a reason as to why. But I PROMISE to try and update as regularly as possible for me. Good thing is that it's nearly school holidays for me, so i'll have A LOT more time to write. :D**

**Anyway, enjoy the long awaited chapter!**

* * *

As the sun rose, I sat in my corner, legs drawn up to my chest and my head resting on my knees. I looked at my feet as I let a tear creep down my face when I thought about the chimera girl and what she must've gone through.

"Alexia?"

I looked up to find Ed standing in front of me, looking down at my face. I looked away, staring at my feet again.  
Ed sat down next to me and tapped me on the shoulder. I looked up to see him smiling.

"Don't worry," He started, grinning like an idiot. "We'll catch whoever did this, and you know it."

I smiled back, looking at his eyes. Determination burnt as brightly as a flame.  
He got up and walked over to where Al sat, sitting and started talking to him.  
I thought about the chimera girl again, wondering who could've done such a monstrous thing.

"Hey Ed, don't we have to report this to Mustang?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Yeah, I should probably go and do that now." He replied, walking out the door and nonchalantly waving.

* * *

Some time passed when Ed suddenly came running back to the door.

"Quick, Come on Al, Alexia!" He barked, leaving just as fast as he'd arrived.

We ran down the street to where the only pay phone was, wondering what Ed was on about. Then I saw it.

A small trail of blood, leading straight up the road.

"It's still wet, so they can't be too far away. Let's go." Ed said, breaking the silence.

Al nodded, following Ed with me close behind.

I mentally readied myself for what may lay ahead, fidgeting with the bottom of my shirt.  
I made a small noise when I noticed I stood on something soft, but hard at the same time. Only now did I notice that the trail of blood had stopped. I looked down and squeaked with surprise and horror.

There, laying in the middle of the dirt road, was a severed arm with a blood-splattered note attached to it.

"What's wrong, Alexia?" Al asked, hearing my noise.

"That... Right there..." I stuttered, taking a few paces back and pointing.

He grabbed Ed's shoulder, still focused on the arm.

Edward only gasped, frowned, then picked up the note and read it aloud.

"If you don't stop butting into my business, then you'll be next. But worse."

"Which one of us though? It could be anyone." Al questioned, looking at the both of us.

"I don't know, but we better be on our guard. So that means we can't all sleep at once." Ed replied.

"We'll have to take turns being on the lookout for this guy." I softly spoke up.

"Yep, I'll take the first shift, then Al, then you Alexia. That okay?" Ed said, earning a nod from Alphonse and I.

Giving us both a wide grin, we all headed back to the house we were staying in.

* * *

Night's shadow quickly spread itself over the town as Al returned from getting firewood.

"Damn electricity isn't working again. If I knew where the main source was, I'd go fix it..." Ed mumbled to himself, rubbing two automail fingers together, making a spark that set the wood alight.

I sat by the fire, staring intently at the burning wood, twigs and leaves. It reminded me of when I went camping once...

It was happier times back then, when my family was still alive. My mum, dad, brother and I would visit a nice little place by the river. We'd go fishing, have a picnic, and have all sorts of fun.

I enjoyed getting lost in those memories...

_Alexia..._

I heard my name being called, but by who? It sounded so familiar.

_Alexia._

Who was it? A hazy fog had settled itself in my mind, clouding my eyes.

"Alexia! Snap out of it!"

Strong hands shook my shoulders, bringing me out of my stupor.

Golden stared into hazel as my mind suddenly came into sharp focus again.

"Are you okay? You feeling alright?" Ed asked, still holding on to my shoulders.

"Uhh... Yeah, I'm fine." I replied, smiling.

He let go of me and turned back to the fire, letting out a frustrated sigh.

I also turned back to the fire, feeling heat quickly spread across my face that was hotter than the flames in front of me.

* * *

"Al, you're up. Keep an eye out." Ed mumbled, stifling a yawn with the back of his hand.

"Okay, have a good sleep, Brother." He answered, getting up and heading out the door.

I watched as Ed unceremoniously flopped onto the table he used as a bed.

"G'night Alexia..." Ed murmured, rolling over and starting to lightly snore.

I giggled as quietly as I could, getting out from under my sheets.

"G'night Edward." I whispered, exiting the room and walking outside.

"Hey Al. How you going?" I said, sitting on the chair beside him very un-lady-like.

"I'm good, what about you?" He said, lazily looking over to me.

"I'm good." I replied.

We sat in silence for what seemed like forever. The tension between us was so thick, you could cut it with a knife. You could literally _see_ the tension moving before us.

"Hey Al, can you see something moving out there?" I asked, staring into the darkness.

"Yeah, I can." He said, getting up and taking a few steps out.

Whatever was moving around out there, saw him, and ran.

"Meh, must've been a cat or something." I shrugged, yawning softly.

"Aww... I hope it's okay..." Al mumbled, hanging his head.

I giggled at his almost comical look, which made him chuckle as well. This made me chuckle back which, after a little while, turned into full-blown hysterical laughter that lasted for a while.

"You know, you don't have to stay up with me. You'll have to do your own shift soon so you should get some sleep." Al stated, attempting to keep his laughter under control.

"Yeah, but then you'll be lonely. I don't want anyone to be lonely." I replied, trying to stifle my own laughter with a big smile.

"Okay then, but promise me that if you get tired during your shift, you'll tell me so I can take over. Promise?" Al negotiated, finally reducing himself to slight giggles.

"Promise." I replied, only now noticing my eyes were aching due to lack of sleep.

After a long while of small conversations, it was my turn to keep guard.

"I'll see you in the morning, Al." I said, waving.

"Yeah, goodnight Alexia." Alphonse replied, waving back to me.

I smiled to myself, but after an hour of silence, I now noticed how lonely it is by yourself. I continued to stare out into the darkness, humming a tune to myself, which later turned into me singing to myself.

_Wherever you go  
You know I'll be there  
If you go far  
You know I'll be there  
I'll go anywhere  
So I'll see you there _

You place the name  
You know I'll be there  
You name the time  
You know I'll be there  
I'll go anywhere  
So I'll see you there

I don't care if you don't mind  
I'll be there, not far behind  
I will dare  
Keep in mind  
I'll be there for you

A loud rustle from a nearby bush startled me, making me stop singing. I searched as much as I could for whatever made the noise, but to no avail.

I was starting to get really freaked out, so I kept singing with a shaky voice.

_When there's a truth  
You know I'll be there  
Among the lies  
You know I'll be there  
So I'll see you there_

A loud SNAP behind me made me jump a mile high. I slowly turned around and saw someone standing behind me.

I felt pain, then the world went black.

* * *

**AHAHAHAHAHAHA! Cliffy! The song is "Poprocks and Coke" By Greenday if you didn't know. Please R&R, flames will be used to set fire to Roy's desk :P**


End file.
